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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/29362704">Flip</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/Nebulapaws/pseuds/Nebulapaws'>Nebulapaws</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>Febuwhump 2021 [1]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>The Legend of Zelda &amp; Related Fandoms</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Angst, Everyone actually needs a hug, Febuwhump 2021, Four needs a hug, Gen, Hurt/Comfort, I apologize for any mistakes when writing a character with DID, Linked Universe (Legend of Zelda), Not Beta Read, Panic Attacks, breakdowns</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2021-02-11</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2021-02-11</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-13 04:35:36</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>2,758</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/29362704</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/Nebulapaws/pseuds/Nebulapaws</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>It was one of those rare days where the group were allowed to relax, to sit back and <i>breathe</i></p>
<p>Too bad Dink apparently had different plans.</p>
<p>Day 1: <s> Mind Control </s> // Identity Reveal</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Four &amp; Sky (Linked Universe), Red &amp; Sky (Linked Universe), the whole gang - Relationship</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>Febuwhump 2021 [1]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/series/2156928</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>2</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>103</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>Flip</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>
  <i>“I’m gonna go back<br/>I’m gonna go back<br/>I’m gonna go back to a face, no more mask<br/>I was in full bloom until I met you<br/>I’m gonna shake my fetters I’m breakin’ loose.”<br/>-” Flip ” by Glass Animals.</i>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Tw; panic attacks / breakdowns.</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <b>
    <em>It was one of </em>
  </b>
  <span>those rare moments where the group had a chance to rest.  They were in Four’s Hyrule, in the Minish Woods by the looks of it. The evergreen grass fluttered in the gentle breeze, a stream in the distance gurgled and bubbled. Milky gold beams of sunlight cut through the thick summer leaves on the tree. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Wild was talking animatedly with Wind about one of his Divine Beasts--was it Vah Medley? Medoh? Whatever. Legend and Warriors were, predictably, sparring with each other while Hyrule watched aptly. Twilight was nowhere to be found; instead “Wolfie” was lazing about in the shade of a large oak tree, next to Time who was keeping watch over the group of heroes. Sky was sitting right next to Four, carving what looked to be a statue of the Master Sword with a pensive expression. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Four--or rather </span>
  <em>
    <span>Red</span>
  </em>
  <span>--was quietly preparing a sort of make-shift forge, so he could use this downtime to repair anyone’s weapons. He gazed at the small pile of weapons cast haphazardly to the side and grinned. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <em>
    <span>This would be a lot faster if Legend and Twilight fucking helped us</span>
  </em>
  <span>, came a sudden wave of annoyance. Blue. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <em>
    <span>It would, but we can manage just fine on our own</span>
  </em>
  <span>. Came a distant sigh. Vio. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <em>
    <span>What should we start with? Sky’s mail looks awful, but Wars’ sword is bent</span>
  </em>
  <span>. Green interrupted the two breezily. </span>
  <em>
    <span>Easier or harder first?</span>
  </em>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“How ‘bout we repair the more important things first?” Red whispered. “Just in case.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>There was a whole minute of quiet as Red’s headmates pondered this. Green broke the silence. </span>
  <em>
    <span>That’s not a bad idea. Warrior’s sword should be first. It's easier </span>
  </em>
  <span>and</span>
  <em>
    <span> it's practically unusable in a fight and his only weapon. It’d be best to start there.</span>
  </em>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Finally given a clear task, Red excitedly pulled Warrior’s bent sword out from the pile. He skimmed his fingers on the dull blade, thinking quietly to himself. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <em>
    <span>It looks like it’ll need to be sharpened, too. </span>
  </em>
  <span>Vio hummed. </span>
  <em>
    <span>And polished. There’s still some leftover blood residue on it. Is it dried? </span>
  </em>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“No,” Red mumbled. He placed it against a boulder Time and Wild helped brace against a sturdy-looking oak and pulled out Blue’s hammer. Red frowned. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Wars had bent his blade when the group got ambushed by Wild’s Moblins and a Phantom Knight. He’d tried to parry an attack meant for Wind with the flat of his blade, but the blow from the infected Phantom Knight was devastating, and it ended up bending the blade like a boomerang.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <em>
    <span>You sure you wanna straighten the blade by hammering it? We could probably just straighten it with a vice</span>
  </em>
  <span>. Green suggested. Red shook his head, though he doubted the others could actually see it. He liked the repeated motions of a hammer. It let him think.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Red fell into a constant rhythm, occasionally stopping to examine the blade and check if it's perfectly straight or not. Once he deemed it to be perfect, he rummaged through their rucksack and pulled out a whetstone, alongside a bottle of oil and a rag. While he was doing that, his mind thrummed with the chatter of his two brothers, Green completely silent. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <em>
    <span>We should do Sky’s mail next. </span>
  </em>
  <span> Vio suggested suddenly. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Red could hear a grunt.  </span>
  <em>
    <span>I think we should sharpen Twilight’s sword </span>
  </em>
  <span>then</span>
  <em>
    <span> do Sky’s mail. It's a quick fix.</span>
  </em>
</p>
<p>
  <em>
    <span>Yes, but we might as well get it out of the way. Twilight can still fight with a dull sword, Sky has no protection. </span>
  </em>
  <span>Vio argued. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <em>
    <span>Yeah, but he won’t fight as </span>
  </em>
  <span>good</span>
  <em>
    <span>, Vio.</span>
  </em>
  <span> Blue growled back, like a wave crashing against a mountain. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>A moment of quiet, while Red snags Twi’s sword from the pile. </span>
  <em>
    <span>Fine.</span>
  </em>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Red stifled a giggle and angled Twilight’s blade against his whetstone quietly. In the corner of his eye, he noticed Warriors and Legend padding towards him, playfully bantering back and forth. Warriors grabbed his sword with a large grin. “Holy </span>
  <em>
    <span>Hylia</span>
  </em>
  <span> this sword looks brand new!” </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Red rubbed his neck abashedly distantly aware that his face was going pink. “It's not </span>
  <em>
    <span>that</span>
  </em>
  <span> good,” </span>
</p>
<p>
  <b>
    <em>Yes, it is</em>
  </b>
  <span> Vio and Blue chorused. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Red only blushed harder.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>After a while, he slipped back into his rhythm. Green had returned, and his head began to buzz with back and forth conversation. Sometime’s he’d chime in, but for the most part, he kept quiet. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>The day passed by rather quickly, and soon the clearing the group was camping out in was splashed in soft beams of milky moonlight. The clearing was alight with noise; crickets chirping and trilling in the distance, fire crackling softly while the heroes chatted amongst themselves in hushed tones. Sky had finished his sculpture of the Master Sword, proudly brandishing it at Red with a dorky grin. He declared “I’m gonna give this to Sun!” happily before carefully wrapping it in a cloth, and gently placing it in his bag. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Legend and Warriors were taking watch around Red’s makeshift forge, tired from sparring all day, with Hyrule hovering just over Red’s shoulder attempting to have a conversation. According to him, he’d been all but banished by Wild from the cooking pot. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Wind, with a rather serious expression on his face, was keeping watch as well. Though, by the looks of it, he was actually just trying to see what Wild was cooking. Twilight seemed to be telling Time stories about the Ordonian children back at home. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>It was quiet and peaceful. Red gently put away all of his tools and sat heavily down next to Hyrule. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Naturally, that’s when they were ambushed. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Red didn’t notice at first until Legend’s eyes had widened and he shot up from his relaxed seat perched on top of a rock, sword brandished to block a club poised to bludgeon Red. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>And just like that, everything erupted into action. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Wars quickly pushed off the tree he was leaning on a gleam in his eye as he teamed up with Legend to drive what seemed to be one of Wind’s moblins away from Red. Hyrule got up too, frantically searching for his sword until he found it braced up against Red’s makeshift forge. In a moment, he was locked in a duel with one of Wild’s Lizfos. Red watched as it skittered away before Hyrule could get a clean hit on it, and zip right back with its spear in an attempt to gore Hyrule in turn. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>In a flash of blue light, Wild had brought out a sleek midnight black broadsword, and a sturdy looking Knight’s shield. He twirled the sword experimentally in his hands and then slashed in a wide arc at three bokoblins attempting to sneak up on Twilight, decapitating the three with practised ease. They dissipated in plumes of dark and dirty smoke.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Twilight, now backed by Wild, was holding back a Lynel mid-charge by the horns. Wild took this chance and threw the black broadsword at the Lynels face. It broke on impact, and he used that moment of distraction to mount the lynel and attempt to stab its back. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Meanwhile, Time and Wind stood back to back swords at the ready and covering each other's blind spots. Red counted at least four bokoblins from Sky’s era and five moblins from his own era. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>A resounding </span>
  <em>
    <span>CRACK!</span>
  </em>
  <span> Made Red whip his head over to see a moblin wrapped up in Sky’s whip. Sky held the Master Sword skyward, before slashing downwards at the moblin in one smooth practised motion. He sent Red a worried glance, and that’s all Red needed to be kicked into motion. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>In a moment, he unsheathed the Four Sword, fingering the familiar wraps around the hilt. He parried an attack from a blue lizfos, just barely blocking a rather underhanded jab to the gut. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Four! Duck!” </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Red’s ears perked up at Time’s yell, and he ducked just in time to see a claymore woosh were by his throat used to be. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Distantly, Red felt himself slipping. He felt his control slowly slip away, like sand through his fingers. This was </span>
  <em>
    <span>terrible</span>
  </em>
  <span> timing. If he switched </span>
  <em>
    <span>now</span>
  </em>
  <span> they’d get seriously injured. Or worse, </span>
  <em>
    <span>killed</span>
  </em>
  <span>. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Red felt panic grip him like a vice. </span>
  <em>
    <span>No no no nonononono this can’t be happening--</span>
  </em>
</p>
<p>
  <span>His heart thumped wildly in his chest like a caged rabbit, and his ears rang painfully. By reflex, he parried an upward slash by an unknown attacker, but his grip on his blade was shaky at best. His fingers trembled. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He squeezed his eyes shut tight, distantly aware that </span>
  <em>
    <span>someone</span>
  </em>
  <span> was yelling. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Red had absolutely no idea </span>
  <em>
    <span>why</span>
  </em>
  <span> he did it. He’d never dealt with a switch that happened mid-battle before. He didn’t know what to do. So naturally, he brandished the Four Sword skyward--</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>The numbness fled his body, and he gripped the sword like a lifeline.  Opening a hesitant amber eye, he saw his brothers out too. </span>
  <em>
    <span>Uh...whoops?</span>
  </em>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Blue shot him a rather dirty look that clearly said </span>
  <em>
    <span>we’re gonna fucking talk about this later</span>
  </em>
  <span>. The others hadn’t noticed just yet, too preoccupied with a losing battle. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>They made quick work of the monsters after that. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Red had to admit, he missed this. He missed fighting alongside his brothers.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>After their split, the monsters were easily overwhelmed. Blue was a thunderstorm, he was absolutely </span>
  <em>
    <span>ruthless</span>
  </em>
  <span>. Singleminded in fighting, but he fought so truculently that his enemies never really lasted long. He cleared moblins attempting to gang up on Wars and Legend, flattening them like pancakes under his hammer with a rather concerning grin. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Green’s fighting style was similar to Blue’s in a way. Except he included a lot more evasion, and he changed enemies and tactics like the wind changes directions. His attacks were unpredictable, but Red shared a mind with Green. He knew that the boy loved to go for lighter attacks, then follow up with a devastating blow, sometimes alternating the order between the two. Green, Time and Wind effortlessly drove back the hordes of assaulting bokoblins and moblins.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Vio was...</span>
  <em>
    <span>interesting. </span>
  </em>
  <span>The boy was unafraid to use more </span>
  <em>
    <span>underhanded</span>
  </em>
  <span> tactics. He slashed and jabbed, and unbalanced his enemies with ease. He was balanced and completely unmovable and Vio was a </span>
  <em>
    <span>mean</span>
  </em>
  <span> shot with a bow, too. Not as good as Wild, but he still </span>
  <em>
    <span>never</span>
  </em>
  <span> missed.  With that in mind, he and Hyrule made a decidedly formidable team.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Red, personally, enjoyed to use quick attacks and pull away before the enemy could retaliate. To say he felt more comfortable in his own skin, rather than ‘Four’s’ was the understatement of the </span>
  <em>
    <span>year</span>
  </em>
  <span>. It wasn’t to say he didn’t like being with his brothers--he did! honest!--it just felt so </span>
  <em>
    <span>good</span>
  </em>
  <span> to not have anyone backseat fighting or telling him that he really shoulda flattened that </span>
  <em>
    <span>damned Bulbin--</span>
  </em>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He happily assisted Sky with the remaining stalfos cutting them down as if he were cutting through butter. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>With the battle over, and minimal injury overall, here comes the hard part; explaining. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Wild looked forlornly at his now completely charred food before tossing it aside. Twilight patted him on the back solemnly. Otherwise, the clearing was empty except for the sounds of armour clinking and a crackling fire.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>The silence was broken by Legend, who said “So--uh--can I kindly ask: what the </span>
  <em>
    <span>fuck</span>
  </em>
  <span>,” </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Green opened his mouth to explain, but Red stopped him. Blue was pouting to Green’s side, his sharp aquamarine eyes stewing with anger. Vio had his nose stuffed in a book, leaning against Red. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>There was no turning back now. Red took a deep, steadying breath. He didn’t want to cry. He shouldn’t be allowed to. This was </span>
  <em>
    <span>his</span>
  </em>
  <span> fault, anyway. </span>
  <em>
    <span>How to explain…</span>
  </em>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He unsheathed the Four Sword and let it rest in his palm. “Two years before we met, Zelda was kidnapped by Vaati--”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He gazed at Vio to gauge his reaction. He didn’t exactly tell the full truth; Zelda was kidnapped by </span>
  <em>
    <span>Shadow</span>
  </em>
  <span>, not Vaati. It wasn’t even one of Vaati’s orders, Red didn’t think. But he didn’t want to mention that. Shadow was a topic for another day. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“--and we needed to save her! So we pulled out the Four Sword from the sanctuary, and when we did, instead of doing </span>
  <em>
    <span>nothing</span>
  </em>
  <span> like it did before--sorta--it split Link into four separate people.” Red inhaled deeply.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Was he rambling? He was probably rambling.</span>
  <em>
    <span> Oh well.</span>
  </em>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Green, Blue, Vio and Me!” Red exclaimed proudly. He thought he caught Vio sigh “and I” from his book. So he </span>
  <em>
    <span>wasn’t</span>
  </em>
  <span> actually reading. “Green’s the leader--he’s courageous and brave! Blue’s impulsive and a has a bit of an anger issue--”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I do fucking </span>
  <em>
    <span>not</span>
  </em>
  <span>,”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Vio’s calm and collected,” Red continued, ignoring Blue. He was on a roll now, the words spilling like a waterfall out of his lips before he could stop it. “I’m a bit emotionally inclined!”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“And sensitive,” Blue added glumly. Red giggled. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“When our adventure was over, we tried to combine again...but we changed so much during our adventures together that it was kinda like putting puzzle pieces back together from different puzzles. They didn’t actually go together. Because of that, we ended up split. Our personalities all intact, but not quite together!” Red rambled. He tried to ignore the group’s expressions. Confusion ranging all the way to mild horror.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <em>
    <span>They think we’re freaks, don’t they? </span>
  </em>
</p>
<p>
  <em>
    <span>Ignoreitignoreitignoreitignoreitignoreitignore--</span>
  </em>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Red played with a stray thread of his tunic. He really didn’t know how to explain it. He felt Vio close his book quietly. Vio gave him a questioning look. Red shook his head. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“now we all share one body. We’ll occasionally switch “control” over the body. I was fronting when we split, but everyone else fonts too! Green does it the most.” Red rambled. The camp was quiet for a second. Red’s heart was beating so loudly, he could’ve sworn everyone else could hear it. He was fighting back tears, too. </span>
  <em>
    <span>Great</span>
  </em>
  <span>. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Is that why you usually shut down after switching times?’ Wind piped up. There was no malice in his expression, merely childlike curiosity. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Vio nodded. “We get kinda scrambled, and when we’re disoriented headaches get...unpleasant.” </span>
</p>
<p>
  <em>
    <span>Understatement of the year, Vio. </span>
  </em>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Why didn’t you tell us?” Time asked softly. There was no malintent in his tone either. Merely concern. He wasn’t hurt or offended. He didn’t </span>
  <em>
    <span>seem</span>
  </em>
  <span> to hate them. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>The colours didn’t answer for a moment. Finally, Red piped up timidly. “We thought you guys would hate us, or or think we’re insane…” </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Why would we hate you?” Twilight questioned. Red tried to hold back a grimace. If </span>
  <em>
    <span>Legend</span>
  </em>
  <span> didn’t hate Twilight for being able to turn into a wolf using dark magic, nobody would hate Four for being unwillingly split. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Everyone else in the village thinks we’re fucking insane,” Blue grunted as if that was the most obvious thing in the world. “They think we can’t hear them say shit, but we’re not fucking </span>
  <em>
    <span>deaf</span>
  </em>
  <span>.” </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>A few looks of sympathy. Honestly, that was to be expected. However, Red </span>
  <em>
    <span>wasn’t</span>
  </em>
  <span> expecting the look of rage on Sky’s face. He scooted a little ways away. Sky looked pretty scary when he wanted to be. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Red shifted nervously on his hands. Red ventured. “..Sky? Are you--”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>The four of them where quickly enveloped in a fierce hug. Red accepted it happily. Blue mumbled something under his breath, while Green socked him lightly on the shoulder. Por Vio looked like he didn’t know what he should be doing with his hands. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“We would never hate you,” Sky mumbled into Red’s shoulder. “You’re our family! And if some--” he gestured vaguely “--</span>
  <em>
    <span>person</span>
  </em>
  <span> thinks you’re crazy? That’s on them! They’re missing out on an amazing friend--or friends, I guess.” </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Red grinned and sniffled. He hadn’t realized he was crying (nothing new there, to be frank). “Y-you mean that?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Of course,” Sky affirmed softly. “I wouldn’t say it if I didn’t mean it. We’re not gonna hate you for things you can’t control. It wasn’t even your fault”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>A gloomy look passed over Sky’s features. Guilt. Red could already picture the thoughts going through his predecessor’s head. That was a topic for another day, Sky shouldn’t be put on the spot like that. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Wild quickly interrupted their confession session (heh) with an exclamation that dinner was ready. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>The group huddled around the cooking pot as Wild poured everyone bowls of beef stew. He sat down by Red’s side, stowing away his ladle. Red looked at his friends, exhausted from their battle but still in high spirits nonetheless. He couldn’t imagine a better place to be. </span>
</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Honestly, not too happy with the ending, and I felt like I could do more with it. But, I couldn't actually think of <i> h o w </i> I wanted to write that, so bit of a weak ending, I'll admit it. </p>
<p>Comments, Shares and Kudos appreciated!! hope y'all stay safe &lt;3</p></blockquote></div></div>
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